The music from the Christmas song: ‘Last Christmas’ which fills the sound track especially at the beginning is the best we get in this non Christmas present. The story about Kate is bland and she is not a like able character through most of the film.
Kate (Emilia Clarke) is an immigrant in England from eastern Europe, along with her family they find prejudice against them as new citizens in this different land. The film begins with childhood Kate (Madison Ingoldsby) singing with a choir in the past before England. There is a hint that she has a future as a singer. But in England she works as an elf in a Christmas shop where we find her a less than reliable employee. In fact she is quite nasty to many folks, she outs her sister’s sexuality to her conservative parents and she beds every guy she can pick up on any evening.
When Kate has no place to sleep she bunks in with a married friend and can’t resist bringing in a new guy she picks up for the night, she is careless with the art work of the friends husband and leaves the door of the Christmas store unlocked over night and the place is robbed and trashed.
She meets Tom (Henry Golding) riding his bike on the street and he tells her to look up and brings her to new places to visit and admire. One is a Christmas lit park an another are the well Christmas lit streets that are not on the popular streets. He also introduces her to his very controlled small minimal apartment and doesn’t sleep with her. He also introduces her to a food center where homeless folks go for nourishment.
We learn she had a medical crisis a few years ago and that appears to have had an effect on her confidence and ability to care about anyone, now she spends her time on immediate ratification and flopping where ever she can. Her relationship with her parents is rough on the edges and is not helped by the needs of her mother (Emma Thompson) who continues to live back in the old country in her mind.
Even with an interesting twist at the climax the trip getting there lacks any feeling or interesting scenes, activity or dialogue, this may be the Grinch the Holliday season.